Customer Reviews
Another Step to Being Green 
2008-06-24
This mower has done all I ask of it. It leaves behind a beautifully groomed lawn whilst being quiet and non-polluting. Having said that there are a couple of things of which potential purchasers should be aware. There are probably more sturdily built mowers available but the price offsets this. Also, the American Lawn Mower Company has these machines built in China. If you have a small lawn and you don't let the grass grow too long this machine should meet your needs and give you some exercise.
hard to push in thick grass 
2008-06-23
I was really looking forward to using a no gas mower, but..... I couldn't get this product to work in St. Augustine grass if it was the least bit thick. I do believe that you need to be taller than 5 foot 2 inches as well to get the right angle for optimal push power. I got only a portion of my yard done and had to go buy a gas mower in order to get the rest of it done.
OMG wonderful 2008-06-17
I JUST LOVE THIS THING it was easy to put together, cuts wonderfully (not like a gas but works for me) the setting r easy to adjust(no tools), and it a GREAT CARDIO workout and it easy to carry. and when im cutting all i smell is fresh cut grass not gas and soot and i can mow barefoot without that much worry (hate shoes on grass 100% REDNECK WOMAN) WOULD RECOMEND
Works Great! 2008-06-16
We originally purchased the Scotts 20" Reel Mower. It was awful but we decided to give the American 18" a try. This mower works great. We purchased this mower to save on gas and like the added health benefits. (My husband actually jogs around the yard with it.) We are pleased with the mowing results so far.
Slow, slow shipping 2008-06-12
I read many reveiws on here before I bought this item about how it arrived almost immediately even though they didn't pay extra for expedited shipping.
This was not true in my case and since we're in the middle of lawn mowing season, I wanted to mention to people that you might need to make arrangements for your lawn to be mowed before this item arrives. It said 'in stock' when I ordered it, many reviews said shipping was fast, but I ordered it June 10th and now they tell me it's not expected to arrive until the end of the month. It says it won't even be shipped until a week after I ordered it and it still says "in stock" on the item page.
I would have paid the extra $20 approximately at Ace Hardware and had the option to return it in person if I had known that I'd have to pay someone $35 to mow my lawn until then. They wooed me with a cheaper price, but in the long run it's going to cost me more.
Excellent for the price 
2008-07-26
This mower is easy to handle and is as carbon-neutral as you can get! It arrived quickly and was ready to use in 5 minutes.
Buy a sickle instead 2008-07-26
Don't believe the good reviews. This is one of the most poorly made contraptions out there; I might as well have bought snake oil. The construction of the handle is incredibly flimsy, which causes the blades to bind up because you can't apply equal even pressure. After two months, I've already lost nuts and bolts from it in the yard and foam grip is coming off in multiple places. Oh, and while the "blade" assembly is 18" wide, the final two inches on both sides don't really seem to cut anything.
Your lawn will look horrible. This "lawnmower" hardly cuts anything. I often loose track of what I cut because there's just so much grass left after pushing through a row. Even when cutting twice with crisscrossing patterns my lawn looks like it was mowed by a lazy teenager. This mower
will not cut the seed stalks from grass, so you'll have to get a weedwhacker for that. Oh, and keep that weedwhacker or edger out because any grass near pavement will just be pushed flat rather than cut; that will also become a near weekly job. Of course since the mower can't cut anything close to the sides of a building (we're talking 5 inches uncut when the outer wheel is rubbing against the wall) you'll need that weedwhacker out all the time anyway.
Don't believe those people that say this mower is better for your grass than a gas powered one. Gas powered motors, they say, just "rip" or "tear" grass but reel mowers actually "cut" it. That's simply propaganda. If you examine the grass tips of either properly working mower you'll see no difference except that reel mowers tend to cut the grass straighter (ie perpendicular) while gas mowers have a bit of an angle to the cut. And reel mowers bend the grass back to cut it against the blade anywyay, so all mowever bend grass.
This product shouldn't be bought for more than $20-$30 bucks, and then only as a novelty. Sure, it's quiet and easy to push, but so is a tricycle without a kid on it. Save your money until they develop good battery power mowers.
Awesome mower! 2008-07-20
I recently bought this mower and I absolutely love it! It mows great and leaves my lawn looking wonderful. It pushes as easy as my old gas mower and is easier to back up and get around beds and trees. The only negative thing is that due to the wheels and cutter,it does not mow as close but I just trim with a hand trimmer. I would recommend everyone to try this! Even my dad who used the old time reel mowers was so impressed with it! You can visit with neighbors and hear the birds singing while you mow! It is great and it takes me less time to mow since you don't have to take time to start your mower and add $4.20 a gallon gas every time you mow!
Good mower 2008-07-02
Easy to set up. The blade does need tightening right out of the box, it would be almost impossible to push if you didn't loosen it up a bit before trying it out. It cuts very well, even on our weedy grass, but you do need to keep up regularly and it might take a lot of energy and time on a large lawn. Works great on medium or smaller lawns, however. It is nice that it's not nearly as loud as a gas powered mower.
A blast from the past that you'll love! 2008-07-01
I recently borrowed a friend's Great States #815-18 18" Deluxe Reel Mower to try on my yard. He bragged on it and told me I should give it a try. I like things labeled Deluxe. Seems like another era doesn't it? Much better than an Extreme Mower... Maybe they need to call these things Deluxe Stealth Mowers.
What a joy it was to use. Lightweight, no real noise, no vibrations, no debris being flung out from under the mower at 900 mph towards my children, and no fumes. I could stop and start without stopping and starting an engine. I could walk and listen to music on my Nokia N810 without ear muffs or ear plugs. The kids could get close or ask questions. I declared that day I would buy one.
If only the whole neighborhood would use these mowers. Some weekends are a filled with the roar of a dozen gasoline powered lawnmowers chomping away at the grass at the same time followed by big doses of gas leaf blowers and gas weed-wackers. No relaxing outside with a cold glass of sweet tea on those days. Are all of these gas powered tools really progress? If it is, I'll take a few steps backwards thanks...
I spent $40 this spring on my 10 year old gas mower to get it back on it's feet. I bought a new blade b/c the old one was bent, new gaskets and seals for the carburetor, an oil change, and a new fuel line. Would have cost much more but I am able to to do all my own work. It's been a good machine and has alot of life left in it but I'm tired of it though. Such complexity and roaring noise to do something simple like cut grass. Every year it has cost me $20 or so to get the gas mower ready. I can only imagine what it would cost to use a repair service.
I looked at electric mowers - the type with a motor and battery on board. Nice machines but still more than I need week to week. Still a certain amount of noise. Still a complex device. Then I used this Great States Mower. What a perfect tool for the job. This isn't your grandfather's reel mower. I remember using one of those when I was a kid. It weighed about as much as I did at the time and a real bear to push. Maybe it was a heavy mower or maybe it was out of adjustment. Maybe it was that I was eight years old. Tough to say.
I, like most folks these days, could use a little more exercise. This manual mower helps there. It's not hard to push and it weighs less than my gasoline mower. I feel really good when I get done mowing! I think it is because I was exercising without inhaling all of those exhaust fumes for 45 minutes.
These mowers have limitations as you may read in other reviews. Without a blade spinning at 3,000 rpm+ it does not suck the grass to standing at attention to be chopped by the blades. That means grass blades that don't stand straight enough to get cut won't get cut. It also means that debris like leaves won't get mulched. Surprisingly having mowed my yard with a reel mower a few times now - it just looks better to me. It's not a perfect cut. I can find a few stray blades that got pushed over instead of being cut and stand back up between mows. I'll get them next time. No sweat. The blades get scissored by the reel mower rather than torn or chopped by the gas mower blade. Looks greener to me.
You'll need to mow a little more often. If you let the grass get out of control you'll hate mowing with this mower. Get an electric mower from Great States Mower. With a little extra mowing the finished yard looks great and the effort is minimal. Your body will be better for it too. Save your old gasoline mower for leaf control or mulching. I'm likely going to ditch mine in favor of a leaf rake.
The mower needs little TLC to keep it in top form. Its easy with just a little practice.
The cutter bar has to be adjusted so that the reel blades slide against it evenly. There are two screws on each side of the cutter bar that adjust this. Basically they tilt the cutter bar against or away from the blades. Too close and the mower is hard to push, and too far away and the mower won't scissor the blades of grass. It takes about 10 mins to get it just right the first time and that adjustment should be good for a long, long time.
There is this perfect cutting sound that the mower makes when it is just right. Learn to hear this sound and you'll know all is right with your mower. To sharpen your mower you simply tighten this cutter bar against the blades a little closer than normal and smear valve grinding paste on the reel blades and cutter bar. Push it around the driveway to spin the blades. When the blade edges are uniformly shiny across their length then you are ready to clean the paste off and readjust the cutter bar. You can buy this valve lapping paste from any FLAPS (friendly local auto parts store) and mechanics use this paste when replacing cylinder head valves in a car or truck engine.
The reel mower sharpening kits provide a handle so you can spin the blades while the mower is on your workbench and the grinding compound is the same as the FLAPS paste.
The last time I mowed using a reel mower I did it without earplugs. I did not smell like exhaust. I did not feel run down after 45 mins of carbon monoxide laden exhaust and who knows what else in my lungs. I could listen to my Nokia N810 music player streaming radio to me via Wi-Fi (GO LINUX!) My kids could walk over to me and I could stop or start with no cranky mower engines to start or stop. No flying debris being flung at my children or our animals.
I bought a 10 year old American Mower last night locally. I wanted a Great States Mower #815-18 18" from Amazon (still the best new retail price I've found for that brand) but this deal was too good to pass up at $45. Owner bought it and used it a couple of times before putting it away for a decade. Was one of the Made in the USA versions. Tires for example are basically new so I know it did not get used too many times. The interesting thing is that mine is an American Lawn Mower Company 18-Inch Reel Mower #1815-18 and it is exactly like my buddy's Great States #815-18 18" Deluxe Reel Mower. I mean they even have the same wheels. I am wondering if the companies are the one and the same...
